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Welcome! 

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My name is Heather.  I am a mom to two teenagers, wife to my high school sweetheart, an emergency physician, photographer, and author—roles that have shaped the way I see the world and the way I photograph it. Years spent in the emergency department have given me a front-row seat to life in its most raw and vulnerable moments. That experience has taught me to slow down and recognize the beauty and meaning in the quiet, ordinary scenes that make up our everyday lives.

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My work is rooted in documentary photography. I’m not interested in perfectly posed images—I’m drawn to the real ones: the laughter in the kitchen, the chaos of getting out the door, the quiet connection between people who love each other, or the camaraderie of health care workers as we care for the sickest in our community.  These are the moments that tell the truest stories in life.

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My work in emergency medicine has also given me a deep respect for photographing people in sensitive and meaningful environments. Whether I’m working in a professional or hospital setting, a home, or during an emotionally significant moment, I approach each session with the same care I bring to my work as a physician: with attentiveness, respect, and compassion. I understand how to move gently through spaces where trust matters, and how to document moments without interrupting them.

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When I photograph families, healthcare workers or everyday life, my goal is simple—to create images that feel authentic and honest, warm, and deeply human. I want you to look back at your photographs years from now and recognize not just how life looked, but how it felt. Above all, I want the experience to feel easy, natural, and safe. Just come as you are. I’ll take care of the rest.

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Heather

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PUBLICATIONS

Shadows and Light: A Physician's Lens on COVID  2022

The Faces of Perserverence In Our Childrens Hospitals:  Globe and Mail 2022​

Alone and Afraid:  Alberta's Third Wave in Photos:  MacLeans​ 2021

Year One: The Untold Story of the Pandemic: MacLeans 2021​

AWARDS

Photo Essay and Photojournalism, Honourable Mention - National Magazine Awards, June 2022

​Award for Medical Journalism - Canadian Association of Emergency Medicine, May 2022

Monochrome Photography Awards - Honourable Mention 2022

Praxis Gallery International Motion and Blur Exhibit - Director's Choice 2022

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MEDIA 

Dec 7, 2022 The Globe and Mail

The faces of perseverance in our children's hospitals

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Oct 4, 2022 CBC Radio - The Current

How one ER doctor photographed the intimate moments of critical care

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Sept 17, 2022 | Global News Calgary

Calgary physician documents COVID-19 through photography

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Sept 15, 2022 | CBC News - The Homestretch

Calgary doctor's new book captures photos of health-care workers, patients during pandemic

 

Sept 14, 2022, 2022 The Calgary Herald

Calgary ER doctor's photography book captures COVID-19 in city hospitals

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Sept 13, 2022 | CBC News Calgary

Calgary emergency room physician releases book documenting the pandemic through photos

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July 15, 2021 Alberta Medical Association

Calgary Physician-Photographer Documents Frontline COVID Response

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June 11, 2021 | College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta

Images from the Pandemic Front Lines

 

June 1, 2021 | Maclean's Magazine

Alone and Afraid: Alberta's Third Wave in Photos

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May 8, 2021 | CTV News Channel

Photographing the Front Lines

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May 1, 2021 | City News Calgary, Edmonton, Toronto

Rare photographs reflect fight against COVID-19

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April 23, 2021 | 770 News Radio

PhotoDoc: An Interview with Dr. Heather Patterson

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April 23, 2021 | CTV Calgary

Photography of pandemic depicts exhaustion, tragedy inside Calgary's Foothills Hospital

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Mar 22, 2021 | Maclean's Magazine

Year One: The untold story of the pandemic p.44-45

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Mar 18, 2021 | Calgary Herald
'Speaks to the strength of our team': How Calgary's health-care workers managed one year of the pandemic


Mar 8, 2021
| Calgary Herald
​The pandemic shows how far women have come and how far they have left to go

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Jan 18, 2021 | CBC The National

Doctor turned documentarian​​

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Jan 18, 2021 | Global Calgary
Calgary ER doctor takes sabbatical to photograph colleagues on COVID-19 front lines


Jan 15, 2021 | CTV Calgary
Photos from inside Calgary COVID-19 wards

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Jan 15, 2021 | COVID Kindness, Canadian Medical Association
ER doctor captures humanity and hope through hospital photography project

Jan 14, 2021
| CBC Calgary
Calgary ER doctor captures life on the frontlines of pandemic through photography project​​​

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Jan 14, 2021 | CBC Calgary Radio

How a Calgary emergency room doctor is chronicling the COVID-19 pandemic with her camera

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